Date: Sat, 18 May 1996 20:02:47 +1000
From: leto@rabbit.com.au (Brendon Wickham)
Subject: Long - (Australia) Brother Sister News - 16/5/96
BROTHER SISTER - QUEER NEWS FROM DOWNUNDER
Issue 106 - 16/5/96
Including:
1. Call to dump couples
2. Howard's man attacks 'gayness'
3. Tasmanian gay law action
4. Banking on Credit Union
5. Farewell to Fairfield
6. BRIEFS - Mardi Gras, High Court challenge in Perth
This and previous postings are archived for the QRD. Point
your URL to http://werple.net.au/~leto/news - or
go through the Pacific Region of the QRD at
http://www.qrd.org/qrd/world/pacific/
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CALL TO DUMP COUPLES
*Controversy has erupted over calls to drop a clause
covering same-sex couples from the Sexuality
Discrimination Bill, due to be introduced in Federal
Parliament by Democrat Senator Sid Spindler.*
Spindler has criticised requests by the Australian Council
for Lesbian and Gay Rights that a section dealing with
same-sex couples be removed from the Bill.
Senator Spindler told Brother Sister that dropping Part 6,
Clause 107 of the Bill, which aims to remove discriminatory
provisions against same-sex couples from Commonwealth
Law, could make its passage more difficult.
"It's a politically hard line to run, that 'we want equality, but
not when it disadvantages us...(in cases like) Social
Security claims' " he said.
In a letter to Senator Spindler outlining their concerns
about the Bill, the ACLGR claimed there was "...no
consensus in our community about the way in which our
relationships should be legally recognised".
Co-convenor of the Council, Robyn Walsh, said the
offending section of the Bill was "far too general," and "not
representative of opinion in the gay and lesbian
community."
"Some people may not want to be defined as a couple, and
it fails to cover other supportive (gay) relationships that
aren't sexual or don't fit their definition of defacto," she
said.
When asked what mandate her organisation had to agitate
for such a change to the Bill, Walsh said the community
had not yet voiced its approval for the clause.
"There's a great variation in what people think about the
legal definition of couples. We want the section removed
from the Bill because we aren't sure of it's negative
implications - and there's been no debate in the community
yet."
"We feel that this blanket approach may not work, and that
tackling the specific issues might be more beneficial for the
community. People see clause 107 as being a quick fix,"
she said.
However, Senator Spindler told Brother Sister that his own
survey of attitudes in the gay community had revealed
"overwhelming" support for keeping the same-sex couples
clause.
"The majority say that we should leave the clause in - more
than two thirds," he said.
In its letter to Senator Spindler, the ACLGR asserts that
"the most efficient and effective way to approach same sex
relationship recognition is issue by issue, rather than the
broad brush approach taken by your Bill."
"We therefore call on you to withdraw this section of your
Bill. We do, however, continue to support the inclusion of
provisions that recognise our relationships in specific
areas such as superannuation and insurance."
Senator Spindler rejects the notion that approaching
individual issues like superannuation is the way to go.
"Unless you put a lever in the Bill - like the couples clause -
to introduce that kind of legislation is a massive exercise.
Making those kinds of individual changes is almost an
impossible task."
"It would take a year in preliminary discussions, and then a
further two to three years for all those changes," he said.
Senator Spindler said he would continue to consult the
gay community about the development of the Bill, and had
not yet decided on the fate of the disputed clause.
The Sexuality Discrimination Bill aims to eliminate
discrimination against people based on their sexuality or
transgender. The Democrats plan to reintroduce the Bill to
Parliament this term.
Matthew Denby
HOWARD'S MAN ATTACKS 'GAYNESS'
*Christopher Pearson, openly gay editor of the Adelaide
Review and formerly John Howard's speechwriter during
the recent federal election campaign, says that 'gayness' is
a crass political construct which has long worn out its
usefulness.*
In a talk entitled Gay Stalinism? Political Correctness and
the Gay Community convened by the Institute of Public
Affairs, a right-wing think-tank, Mr Pearson said that
'gayness' was a crass over-simplification of human
experience.
"Gayness is transparently packaging, the sort of thing an
advertising agency might have come up with. If 'gayness'
ever had a strategic usefulness in promoting solidarity, it
has well and truly passed its use-by date.
"I doubt it was ever worth it, because 'gay' collapses a
whole range of different behaviours into the one label, and
by forcing people to commit to the label, it becomes a
coercive exercise in identity politics."
Mr Pearson questioned the personal value of making
premature statements about one's sexual preferences.
"Part of the trouble of confessional statements of most
kinds is that they close one's options, change others'
expectations of you. Certainly in my case relations with
girls were made far more problematic than they need have
been.
"In the 1970's, the act of coming out, at the behest of gay
ideologues in the name of gay liberation, caused much
unnecessary pain for many gay men and their families,
without any clear gain.
"Saying 'I'm gay' seems to internalise just a packaging
abstraction, which tells us practically nothing about
ourselves. Adolescents in particular need the space which
a premature 'coming out' denies them."
Discussing the ultra-leftist 'gay stalinism' of ten and twenty
years ago, Mr Pearson said there are still residual
tendencies of the tactics of the past in gay politics today.
"The most obvious is 'outing', which is simply the labelling
of one's political enemies. Another example of the jackboot
tendency was seen during the recent NSW State election
in the seat of Bligh. The ALP put up an openly lesbian
candidate, not with the intention of winning the seat, but
just to defeat Clover Moore, the incumbent with a clear
gay-friendly record.
"This attempt failed, due to a rational choice by
sophisticated electors who were immune to gay rhetoric,
even though the seat of Bligh takes in the hub of the gay
community around Oxford Street. Gay political leaders can
no longer deliver the votes of the masses en bloc."
Mr Pearson conceded there was some value in
constructing a lesbian or homosexual identity.
"This value lies in its role as an essential way of combating
discrimination, or negotiating the hazards of everyday life.
It is a necessary fiction, but a fiction it remains.
"Gays have this legislative tendency to divide the world up
into four strata: at the pinnacle, there are the openly 'gay',
just above the 'closets'.
"Then come objects of considerable scorn, bisexuals, who
are at best confused part-timers, and who lack the courage
of their real convictions. Finally at the bottom there are the
'hets', or 'breeders'.
"Gay identity is not constructed without cost or victims. This
is plainly a psychotic view of the world, which makes no
allowance for the variability of desire."
Mr Pearson expressed scorn for a pattern of thinking
common among gay men which he referred to as
'colonism', whereby all same-sex sexual acts or activities
are equated with 'gay' acts.
"This total colonisation of gender identity and sexual
intercourse inevitably classifies all individuals who have or
will have a sexual experience with their own gender, as
belonging exclusively to the gay world. 'Gayness' of this
sort involves a forced polarity.
"From my experience, I'm uncomfortable with the idea of a
gay community which is not really one of genuine
community, but one which pretends that one aspect of our
social existence is really more important than all the others.
"The idea of a gay community, with its obsession with
numbers and its role as a sort of comforting umbrella for a
diverse grouping of individuals with a notional
commonality, is on its last legs."
"Equality and liberty are conflicting qualities, and watching
the record of communist regimes in the 1970s, I came to
believe the latter is more important."
When asked about relations between lesbians and gay
men, Mr Pearson replied that historically it's often been the
case that women got more change out of the women's
movement than out of their notionally gay brothers, in terms
of concessions and human understanding.
TASSIE GAY LAW ACTION
*Tasmanian gay law reform activists have welcomed a
commitment by the Greens to force debate on the repeal
the State's anti-gay laws within the next few days. It is
believed that this may be the last opportunity for the
Tasmanian Parliament to repeal these laws before the
High Court considers a case against them later in the
year.*
Tasmanian Greens leader, Christine Milne, said she
expected the controversial reform to be debated in the
Lower House this week and passed with the support of
the ALP as well as some members of the Liberal Party.
Tasmanian Gay and Lesbian Rights Group spokesperson,
Rodney Croome, whose group has been campaigning for
reform for eight years, said that a recently announced
Liberal Party conscience vote gives reform its best chance
ever of passing through the traditionally conservative
Tasmanian Upper House.
"We understand that several members of the Upper
House who have been antagonistic to gay law reform in
the past may now change their minds because of growing
community support for the reform as well as a desire to
see the
issue finally resolved.
"In August the High Court is due to consider whether
our anti-gay laws are invalidated by the national sexual
privacy law passed in response to UN condemnation of
these laws in 1994.
"Given that we have a strong case and are hopeful that
the Court will rule in our favour, this may be the last
opportunity the Tasmanian Parliament has to overturn
these outdated and destructive laws," Mr Croome said.
In a separate move, the Tasmanian Gay and Lesbian
Rights Group has launched a national fundraising
campaign aiming to raise $25,000 to cover the costs of the
current High Court Case against Tasmania's anti-gay
laws.,
According to High Court Challenge Fund organiser Nick
Toonen, who with Rodney Croome is taking Tasmania's
laws to the High Court, the major hurdle to success in the
High Court is raising enough money to cover the costs
involved in the case.
"While our lawyers are very generously donating their
time, the case still involves considerable costs in court
fees, travel, and the expenses of communications and
media work. Without the financial support of Australia's
lesbian and gay communities, we may lose our chance to
have Tasmania's anti-gay laws invalidated.
"We have a very strong case. In the first High Court
hearing in March, the Chief Justice stated that our case
contained constitutionally significant issues and referred
it to the full bench of the Court later this year," Mr
Toonen said.
The High Court Challenge Fund is appealing to all
lesbian, gay and bisexual Australians to contribute to the
Fund and help end the injustice we've been fighting for
so long.
The High Court Challenge Fund is being publicly
supported by Australian International Rugby Star Ian
Roberts, who says "Tasmania's anti-gay laws are an
embarrassment to all Australians. We should all be
supporting Tasmania's lesbian and gay communities in
their efforts to secure their human rights. Contributing to
the High Court Challenge Fund is an excellent way to do
our bit."
Contributions to the Fund can be made to "TGLRG, GPO
Box 1733, Hobart TAS 7001". Further information about
the High Court Case is available from Rodney Croome on
(002) 243 556 or Nick Toonen on 019 405 679.
BANKING ON CREDIT UNION
A "household name" financial institution is interested in
offering insurance and other products through a gay and
lesbian credit union which may be set up later this year.
Research released this week by a volunteer committee
working on the credit union proposal shows
overwhelming support for a gay and lesbian financial
institution, initially serving the Sydney and Melbourne
market.
One of the convenors of the Gay and Lesbian Financial
Institutions Research Project, Tim Dyce, said 86 percent of
300 respondents to a survey of potential users thought
the credit union proposal either "an excellent idea" or "a
reasonably good idea".
Dyce described that result as "a resounding vote of
confidence" in the establishment of a financial
institution tailored specifically for the gay and lesbian
community. Names under consideration include the
Pride Credit Union or the Rainbow Credit Union.
Dyce said a series of cross-reference questions in the
survey established the degree of support gays and lesbians
would give the credit union if it went ahead.
Lesbian respondents said they would deposit close to 75
percent of their income
during a 12 month period; gay men expressed similar
support, Dyce said.
The products respondents most wanted from the credit
union were a savings account with ATM access, a cheque
account and a credit card.
The next step is to convert the market research into a
business plan with 10 year projections, then place the
proposal before State and Federal regulators.
"We're moving on the financial planning work as fast as
we can, but our overriding concern now is to ensure that
the structure we propose to our community will be
secure, commercially viable and professionally managed.
"Very tight regulations are in place to govern the security
of non-bank financial institutions. We will be working
with the appropriate regulators to ensure that the
structure we propose meets the necessary requirements,"
Dyce said.
A significant hurdle faced by any group wanting to
establish a credit union is the need to establish an
untouched capital base of at least 8 percent of the
institution's assets.
It is not yet clear how the proposed gay and lesbian credit
union would raise this capital base, but one option would
be through membership subscriptions.
So who is the "household name" interested in servicing
the pink dollar? "I can't tell you yet," Dyce said. "We've
had preliminary discussions...and should be able to talk
more about it after our first annual general meeting this
June."
Dominic O'Grady, SSO
FAREWELL TO FAIRFIELD
*Fairfield Hospital's HIV/AIDS services were shut down
earlier this week on May 13, amid strident criticism by
HIV/AIDS support groups and the Opposition of the
"insensitive" and "bungled" handling of the closure and
transfer of patients and services to the Alfred Hospital.*
According to the Victorian AIDS Council / Gay Men's
Health Centre (VAC/GMHC), the original date to transfer
patients to the Alfred Hospital, the new primary site for
HIV/AIDS services, was May 20, but because Fairfield
Hospital management had not resolved their industrial
relations problems with specific staff sectors, the welfare of
patients suffered.
Mr Bradley Engelmann, spokesperson for the National
Association of People Living with HIV/AIDS (NAPWA),
reported that people with HIV/AIDS were refused
admission to Fairfield Hospital, and that attempts to move
patients to the Alfred failed because the hospital is not yet
ready to accept them and is in any case unwilling to risk
the spread of industrial action should it accept them.
"We sympathise with industrial action taken at Fairfield
Hospital by workers who are faced with an uncertain future,
together with inadequate redundancy payments, after a
decade of exemplary service", said Mr Engelmann.
"Volunteers and staff ensured over recent weeks that
patients have not been placed at undue risk. The North
Eastern Health Care Network is callously exploiting the
industrial situation, attempting to rid itself of HIV/AIDS
patients well before the announced closure of the
HIV/AIDS wards at the end of the month."
Mr Joe McCluskey, convenor of People Living With
HIV/AIDS Vic (PLWHA), expressed outrage over the move.
"We were told to expect the best possible HIV/AIDS service
that would lead Victoria into the 21st Century. Instead, we
were offered this debacle by inadequate management.
"If any other group in the community were treated in this
way there would be absolute outrage. But because this is
PLWHAs, there is community indifference to this type of
treatment. How many more patients' lives will be placed at
risk before PLWHAs receive adequate service?"
On the day the last seven AIDS patients were moved to the
Alfred, volunteers present were reported as saying it was a
"very sad day", like "waiting for a funeral".
Mr Barry Janes, president of the VAC, said that there had
been no consultation with the VAC in relation to the timing
and movement of patients from Fairfield Hospital, noting
that the VAC's HIV Liaison Committee meeting scheduled
on 3 May 1996 had been cancelled at short notice by the
Fairfield management.
"It is a tragedy that Fairfield Hospital, which has provided a
centre of excellence over so many years, is closing its
doors in an atmosphere of tension, trepidation, hostility and
despair".
Mr John Thwaites, Shadow Minister for Health and
Community Services, said that the premature closure and
transfer was typical of the Kennett Government's lack of
concern about the needs of patients.
"It is inhumane of the government to allow the transfer of
patients to the Alfred when the expanded services for HIV /
AIDS are not yet ready. It is now patently clear that this is
yet another health budget cost cutting exercise".
In a patient bulletin dated May 8, 1996, Dr Alan Sandford,
general manager of Fairfield Hospital, expressed regret
that the rescheduling of the move may have caused
patients, their family, friends or carers.
BRIEFS
Mardi Gras Limits Membership
People wishing to become members of the Sydney Gay
and Lesbian Mardi Gras will be required in future to
provide reasons why they should be able to do so if they
identify as bisexual or heterosexual, or fail to indicate their
sexual identity on their application.
High Court Appeal
A former member of People Lving With HIV/AIDS (WA) has
lodged an appeal with the High Court of Australia. The
appeal was lodged following a decision handed down by
the Full Court of WA in March this year, which dismissed an
Equal Opportunity Tribunal finding that the Perth City
Council and a number of individual councillors had acted
in a discriminatory way in rejecting an application to
establish a drop-in centre in North Perth.
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BOTTOM LINE
SMARTARSE
Not so en-Cage-ing
American queer cinema, filmic reader, has entered a new
epoch of cinematic
queasiness.
I trotted off to see Bird Cage recently. It had all the signs of
a Great Gay Film: marketed to the mainstream,
investigating the reaction of the Republican
Right in America to homosexuality, a bit of drag thrown
in to keep us entertained.
Now, I don't want to dampen anyone's enthusiasm. It's a
lovely film, a charming little number full of campness,
glamourous drag queens, stunning shots of Miami's
South Beach and amusing little comedy-of-manners
situations. At the end, though, I felt like I'd eaten too
much fairy floss. I did enjoy the film, and I laughed quite
a bit, but I couldn't shake the feeling that the straight
audience had enjoyed it far more than I had. In fact, I
think that maybe the straight audience got to laugh at the
gay characters more than I got to laugh with them. That's
a pretty important distinction.
Perhaps it's the price that the film-makers paid when
they decided to recycle the old movie La Cage aux Folles..
The film is about a situation which was radical in its day;
the son of a gay man wants to get married, and in order to
impress the parents of the girl, the gay man and his lover,
a drag queen, try to play straight for the evening.
A 1990s audience is far more sophisticated than the
audience of the original film. So what if the girl's parents
don't like poofs, a 1990s audience might have asked -
they'll get used to it. So in order to beef the film up a little
and keep the drama happening, the girl is made into the
daughter of the leader of the Religious Right, the Moral
Majority. Now we have drama! As the right wing
Senator is running for re-election, there's no way he can
be linked to a gay couple, one of whom is a drag queen:
voila! We return to the original story with the cover-up,
and we get to laugh at the poofs trying to tame those limp
wrists to make themselves appear straight. In the end, a
bit of glamour and a bit of drag save the day.
The film encourages the straight audience to laugh at the
antics of the very campest gay characters (and they are
very camp). There are a few jokes which only the gay
members of the audience get, but basically the humour is
of the ilk of Mr Humphries in Are You Being Served?.
Perhaps, animated reader, I'm just a cynical old twat who
doesn't know how to have fun. I, for heaven's sake,
almost walked out of Jeffrey, the film chosen to open this
year's Queer Film and Video Festival. All that white,
middle-class, ultra-refined angst over whether or not to
fall in love with your gym instructor. Golly, I nearly
passed away with the twee putridness of the whole
exercise.
Give me a bit of grunge, dear reader. Cut the tinsel, stop
trying to impress the straight audience, and shock my
homosexual little socks off with a bit of cinmea verite.
Perhaps I should stick to the torrid old docos on gay
resistance fighters or something.
Jeffrey Smart
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Brother Sister is a fortnightly newspaper published in
Melbourne, VIC and Brisbane, QLD, Australia. I have
selected the main news stories as well as items of interest.
Overseas media who utilise any or all of the above material
please credit Brother Sister as your source (and by-line if it
is listed). Thank you.
Brendon Wickham